Water Quality Adjusting Software...

[Dunkel_Boy]

My brother sent me a link about a week ago, to an Aussie with a website dedicated to a few things, including a few exe files... one of them was called Watersmith or something... looked useful but forgot to write it down.
It allowed you to input your water profile (ion concentrations) and you pick a water profile you want and it tells you what to add.
I have a fair bit of data, but to cut a long story short I'd like to see how to convert Brisbane water to Vienna... it's impossible I think, so if anybody knows the site I'm talking about, or has the Watersmith exe file, can you send it to me, or post it here?
Cheers.

 

[Gulf Brewery]

It allowed you to input your water profile (ion concentrations) and you pick a water profile you want and it tells you what to add.

[post="51303"][/post]​

DB

have you tried using the water section of Promash or similar?

Cheers
Pedro

 

[Dunkel_Boy]

Yeah, I basically use that except I do it on a piece of paper.
Promash is fairly good with that though.
Unfortunately, converting Brisbane to Vienna seems to be impossible... this software could apparently work it all out for you, including ways to offset high levels.
I could just wait until Monday... but I'm dying to find out now.

 

[bradmcm]

What exactly are the profiles for both?
Why can't you go from one to another?

 

[chiller]

Yeah, I basically use that except I do it on a piece of paper.
Promash is fairly good with that though.
Unfortunately, converting Brisbane to Vienna seems to be impossible... this software could apparently work it all out for you, including ways to offset high levels.
I could just wait until Monday... but I'm dying to find out now.

[post="51309"][/post]​

DB,

You often cannot just convert one water to another. Try a mixture of your Brisbane water and RO and then add the salts needed or use RO water and blend the salts you need.

Brewater3 is an excellent program free as a d/load off the Ken Swartz site.

Steve

 

[Dunkel_Boy]

That's the one!
I'm not that naive that I think one water can be converted EXACTLY to that of another region easily... but I'm interested to see if there are some salts/additives that I haven't heard of, or if he basically settles for halfway there as I usually do.

 

[chiller]

That's the one!
I'm not that naive that I think one water can be converted EXACTLY to that of another region easily... but I'm interested to see if there are some salts/additives that I haven't heard of, or if he basically settles for halfway there as I usually do.

[post="51318"][/post]​

Well next time why not try google -- you don't seem to need the help you crave.

I don't consider you naive - well I didn't.

Steve

 

[Dunkel_Boy]

Unfortunately I believed it was called Watersmith... so my Google searches didn't bring up much.
BreWater helps a bit, but as expected it just gets the 'closest to ideal' situation... bloody helpful though, I think +/- 50ppm on most ions, nobody would be able to tell the difference.
Cheers again.

 

[Trough Lolly]

Dunkel Boy,
In case you're wondering, Palmer has the following water profile for Vienna:

Calcium - 10 ppm
Magnesium - 3ppm
Bicarbonate - 3 ppm
Sulphate - 4 ppm
Sodium - 3 ppm and
Chlorides - 4 ppm

That's stuff all of anything - Canberra water is very close to this, but Steve's right I'm afraid - good luck in trying to get your water down to those levels. Adding salts is easy - getting them out is virtually impossible unless you use bottled water that's as pure as the driven snow...
Cheers,
TL

 

[Dunkel_Boy]

You should see Plsen water.
You have the specs, no wonder Urquell tastes so good!
What I'll usually do is a massive dilution with filtered water... but it depends how energetic/patient I'm feeling on the day.
Burton water, strangely, seems to be one of the easiest to hit, and so far with my International Pale Ale, it seems to have definitely done the job.

 

[bradmcm]

Isn't Brisbane water nearly as soft? What is the profile for Brisbane you have Dunkel Boy? Maybe then we can help you?

As for the Vienna profile that would be for the town water supply profile - before going into the brewery. The breweries would no doubt do salt additions, by looking at that profile.

 

[Dunkel_Boy]

Brisbane....

Ca - 21ppm
Mg - 12ppm
Na - 34ppm
SO4 - 20ppm
Cl - 2ppm
HCO3 - 115ppm

Yes, it's soft, and quite good to drink, but the carbonate/bicarbonate kills our mashes... I believe it's been softened (ie calcium removed) and while it's nice to wash your face with, it don't help da beeer.
I'm pretty right with the additions... I've got analytical grade CaSO4 and CaSO3 (just to make me feel tough) and have done it a few times, I was more curious about any other salts/minerals out there (perhaps pure Ca++ ions!... doubt it) to really tune the water in. Of course it can be argued that the numbers read on any given day don't represent the average concentrations (they would probably vary 10-50ppm), and you don't need to get that close anyway...

 

[Gulf Brewery]

Brisbane....

Ca - 21ppm
Mg - 12ppm
Na - 34ppm
SO4 - 20ppm
Cl - 2ppm
HCO3 - 115ppm

DB

I would just add CaCl to bring the Ca up to 50ppm and not worry about anything else for a lager. For the ales, up to sulphates with CaSO4 if required by the style.

Cheers
Pedro

 

[bradmcm]

100 ppm HCO3 is generally accepted as being the maximum level.

You might want to err on the safe side and soften with lime,
then re-add CaCl or CaSO4 to bring back the Ca levels to 50ppm
as Pedro said.